"CANTING BOSH." .

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 508, 15 May 1909, Page 5

"CANTING BOSH." .

fr— ; : ASPERSIONS ON THE CHURCHES. : PLAIN WORDS FROM DR. GIBB. -'Some very plain words were used, by the. Rev. Dr.,-Gibb when: asked for his opinion of;the sentiments.expressed by tho Commonwealth, Premier in his 1 address to a recent meeting of- the Presbyterian General ' AsEembly:of :iAiistralia. ; /::; , My.c6mnieht on those sontiments/' said Dr. .Gibb, "is bosh, : /arid canting; bosE at Ifc' ; is, tini©, and Snore • .than timo that ministers' of religion spoke out plainly, when called on to-vindicate the Church against /the' aspersions of. critics - of .the Socialist/type,/whether/high-placed men' like Mr. , Fisher or hoodlums'like: those that nave turned at .least two:recent /meetings in this city into a voritablo bedlam. If I liave adequate /knowledge:of; the' situation, the Church,, has/been , .for.. some -. time -past very vigorously telling the ricK man of his shortcomings and' lack of . tho. feeling of•.' brotherhcod:. it is. time- the Church had begun;, to tell tho poor man that ho may be as: poor, as :he :calls;;himsolf /and;as/selfish fas3he.,d6vil/ Socialism lriay-be right,or it. may be'wrong ap;eh . economic . theory—l : think/it is-wrong —but a man may be a. good Christian arid a convinced Socialist: But it will: not bo - the. socialism of*class ,hate'and general yahooism. Tho Church has been tho friend of the poor, the genuine poor,: and unhappily too ofton tho friend of the-poor-,whose' povorty is due to, their own ' thnftlessnoss and worthless-,noss.-'"lt would.take a long time to recite what iis being done in this city directly andindireotly through the ohurches to relievo suffering and help the, holpless. Tho Rev. Mr. Mayor, the representative of' th Barnardo Homos,7tho other, evening named a largo number of the leading philuntln'opists ot our own and recent timos, . and overy man and woman of thorn were aisoiplcs and followers of Christ. And' the Church and Christian mon continuo to bo philanthropists. They cannot be anything.else without doriying the /Christ, Who waß not only 'the Son of God, but . also the carpcnter" of Nazareth/ : But ' if the Church, takes up the political role to :which; Mr.. Fisher calls' it/ and , begins, '.to preach Socialism or any other 'ism' than tho Gospel _ of the grace / of God —the /Gospel which; is, not, primarily'; bread/and butter, but righteousness—the only reliable guarantee in the long run even of broad and butter—then her end will bo. at haiid.' There will in this case : be .as;few to mourn her disappearance as thero would be to mourn tho disappearance of'.some" Labour agitators; and the Socialistic crank if. they were to vanish from the sum total of created things." ' '